


Magic Book, Magic Ball

by babywarg (morphaileffect)



Series: DrPepperony Prompts and Fics [4]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Adorable Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Cloak of Levitation (Marvel), Cute Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fairy Tale Elements, Gen, Kid Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), M/M, Morgan Stark-centric (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Other, Parent Pepper Potts, Parent Stephen Strange, Parent Tony Stark, Precious Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Storytelling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 02:15:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21008042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morphaileffect/pseuds/babywarg
Summary: Morgan Stark is seven years old and a good girl and totally deserving of storytime with Papa Stephen and his magic book.





	Magic Book, Magic Ball

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Arbonne](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arbonne/gifts).

> Based on a prompt by amethyst-noir on Tumblr: "*perks up* Drpepperony, you ask? I would love to read something sweet and fun about Stephen playing with Morgan while Pepper and Tony almost die of cutness overload in the background. Basically just Stephen being nice without any mask on and the other two being so in love with him and glad that they found him. Pepper gives Tony like 12% of the credit, of course. ;)"
> 
> Doesn't follow the prompt exactly, but shot for cute family moments, and hopefully does not disappoint XD ♥

Tony found Pepper seated on the ground beside their daughter’s room, nestling a cup of hot cocoa in her hands. The door to Morgan’s room was slightly ajar, and soft night light streamed out of it.

“Pep, what’s - “

“Shh,” she whispered. “It’s magic book night.”

“Ooh!” Tony settled down beside her. “Did we miss anything?”

“He just tucked her in,” she said with a smile. “he’s just about to start.”

They did love these stories, Tony and Pep. Maybe almost as much as Morgan did. When Stephen cracked open the “magic book”, a.k.a. a huge tome with blank pages that he’d specially made for Morgan, which showed words and images that moved as he told his story, they both settled down outside the room, eager for story-time, too.

They liked the idea that Stephen made up stories that Morgan enjoyed - probably because most of those stories had her as the protagonist, and they always ended well.

These were special memories that Stephen and Morgan shared. Her two other parents enjoyed them tangentially.

Tony just wished he’d had the presence of mind to get himself some hot cocoa, like Pepper did. But the story was starting, and there was no time to run down to the kitchen. He would simply have to bum a few sips off her cup.

***

“I _love _the magic book,” Morgan happily declared.

“And you were a good girl all week, so you get the magic book,” Stephen explained. “But are you sure you don’t want _The Velveteen Rabbit_ instead? That’s your favorite non-magic book, right?”

Morgan grimaced. “Non-magic books are for babies,” she confidently pronounced. “I’m seven.”

A chuckle escaped the sorcerer. He bent down to kiss Morgan’s hair.

“All right, seven,” he said affectionately, “let’s start.”

He waved his scarred hand over the open pages, and the first image came to life: that of a small child, with Morgan’s hair and eyes.

The words appeared on the page, above the image, as Stephen started speaking.

***

One day, a little girl named Morgan was walking through the woods.

But the woods were dark and scary, and she got lost.

She started crying out, “Help me, I’m lost!”

Then a knight in shining armor, flying through the woods, heard her cries and stopped for her.

“Where are you going?” the knight asked Morgan.

Morgan answered, “I don’t remember.”

_[“How come she doesn’t remember?” Morgan asked._

_“It’s an enchanted wood,” Stephen explained. “Fairies enchanted it so people forget where they’re going, and get lost inside the forest.”_

_“But the knight’s inside the forest, too. Does that mean the knight is lost, too?”_

_“…No, because the knight has something with him that helps people not get lost. You’ll know more about it later.”_

_“Okay.”]_

The knight said to her, “Don’t worry. Wherever you’re going, I’ll help you find your way.”

He took Morgan’s hand, and led her to the edge of the wood.

When they were out of the woods, Morgan thanked the knight. Because she was a polite child who never forgot to thank anyone who did her a good turn.

The knight was so delighted by Morgan that he took out from the middle of his armor, a bright, shining ball. It fit exactly in one of her little fists.

He said, “That ball is a magic ball. As long as you have it, you’ll never stay lost.”

Morgan thanked the knight again, and the knight said farewell and went back into the woods.

***

_[“But the knight gave the ball to me. I mean to Morgan. Does that mean he’ll get lost now?_

_“The knight has a lot of balls, sweetheart.”_

_“I sure hope so. That knight is nice. But I don’t want him to get lost just because he’s nice.”_

_“The knight is a grown-up, and no grown-ups get lost in this story. Can I continue?”_

_“Yes, please!”]_

The little girl named Morgan had to sail across the sea. But the sea is vast and dark. And Morgan got scared.

She held the ball in her hands and said to it, “Help me, I’m lost.”

A star heard her speak to the ball, and came down from the heavens. She was beautiful, and strong, and gentle and kind.

_[“Like Mommy!” Morgan exclaimed, pointing to the feminine figure on the page that represented the star._

_“Exactly like Mommy,” Stephen confirmed._

_“Wait, why’s Morgan on the sea anyway? She just came from the woods.”_

_“Morgan forgot where she’s going while she was in the woods, remember?”_

_“Oh. Right. Guess I forgot,” chuckling.]_

“Where are you going?” the star asked Morgan.

Morgan answered, “I don’t remember.”

The star said to her, “Don’t worry. Wherever you’re going, I’ll help you find your way.”

The star flew high up into the sky again, and shone a light down on the place where Morgan was going.

Morgan thanked the star, because she was a polite child.

The star smiled, and Morgan sailed to where her smile shone.

***

The island where the light shone was surrounded by mist. As soon as Morgan stepped into it, she was surrounded by pure white. She couldn’t see a thing!

_[“She should wait until the mist lifts,” Morgan said knowingly. “It always lifts, around lunchtime maybe.”_

_“This is a different kind of mist,” Stephen patiently explained. “It’s not like the mist over the lake. It never lifts.”_

_“Oh…well, that’s dangerous!”_

_“It sure is.”_

_“She could fall off a cliff!”_

_“Or step into quicksand.”_

_“Or get run over by a train! Or die of hunger! Or get eaten by a monster and die!”_

_“Err, that’s enough Lemony Snicket for you, little miss. Moving on…”]_

So Morgan held the ball in her hands again. She said into it, “Help me, I’m lost.”

Then the ball shone, really, really brightly. The ball was so bright, it called the attention of someone in the mist.

That someone was a tall, handsome Master of the Mys – I mean, a wizard. Wearing a long red cloak.

_[“It’s Cloakie!” Morgan chirped at the flowing illustration of the cloak. The cloak in the picture waved at her, and Morgan waved back.]_

“Where are you going?” the wizard asked Morgan.

Morgan answered, “I don’t remember.”

The wizard said to her, “Don’t worry. Wherever you’re going, I’ll help you find your way.”

Then the wizard touched the ball that she held in her hands, and out shone a beam of light.

“Follow that light,” the wizard said, “and you’ll find what you seek.”

_[“Can’t he just make a portal for her, so she can get there faster?”_

_“…Let’s say this wizard doesn’t know how to make portals.”_

_Yawning: “Then he needs to take lessons from you, Papa.”_

_Smiling: “I guess he does have a lot to learn.”]_

Morgan thanked the wizard, because she was polite. Then she followed the beam of light out of the mist.

***

When Morgan found the place that the beam of light was leading her to, she saw a house.

It was a cozy wood cabin beside a lake. With a swing and a camping set outside.

She suddenly remembered where she was going. She was trying to find her way home.

And she opened the door to the cabin, and inside waited the knight, the star and the wizard.

“Welcome home, Morgan!” they all said to her.

Then Morgan didn’t feel lost anymore.

She rushed into their arms, and all was well.

***

Morgan rubbed her eyes sleepily even as Stephen was closing the book, on the image of a little girl deep in the embrace of her three loving parents.

“I want a magic ball,” she announced.

“You don’t need one,” Stephen replied. “You have Mommy and Daddy and Papa with you all the time.”

“But Mommy tells me I can’t have parents in school,” she objected. “and Daddy tells me I have to learn to do things on my own, because I won’t have parents to help all the time.”

Stephen paused. Of course, they’d talked about this. They wouldn’t spoil their child. They would simply guide her, but she would learn to navigate her own challenges.

That was the point of the stories in the “magic book,” sometimes, wasn’t it? Not just to get her to go to sleep. But to introduce to her the idea that sometimes, things wouldn’t be okay.

“What if I’m all by myself,” she asked worriedly, “and I get lost?”

Stephen knew what to do to set her mind at ease.

He conjured a small ball of light out of thin air. Only large enough as one of Morgan’s little fists.

She let out a small sound of amazement, as the ball landed in her cupped hands.

The ball of light seemed to sink into her skin. She quickly held it close, and felt a brief warmth against the middle of her chest before it vanished completely.

“There,” Stephen said to her. “Now you have a magic ball with you forever. Even if we’re not around, you’ll never get lost.”

Morgan reached up for a hug, which Stephen warmly returned.

“Thank you, Papa,” she said to him - because she was a polite child, who never forgot to be grateful.

***

Pepper and Tony sighed happily at the same time.

“Really, he should just tell us when it’s magic book night,” Tony whispered. “I don’t want to miss a single one of these.”

“What we should be doing is recording them, probably.”

Tony set his lips.

“You’re recording them right now, aren’t you,” Pepper accused.

“Pep, she’s our first,” was his impassioned defense. “I’m recording _everything_.”

They heard Stephen and Morgan exchanging good-nights, so they got to their feet.

The night light went out, Stephen stepped out of the room and gently closed the door behind him.

He stared at his two smiling spouses, silently asking what was up.

Pepper stepped up to him and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“Always so wonderful,” she whispered to him.

“Tuck us in, too, Papa Bear?” Tony said - somehow making even that sound just a touch lewd.

“In a bit.” Stephen glanced at the now-empty mug Pepper was holding. “Some of that cocoa seems nice. I’m parched.”

Tony leaned up to kiss him, and Stephen got a trace of delicious cocoa from his lips.

“You two get yourselves into bed,” a softly smiling Tony said to his spouses. “I’ll bring some up for all of us.”


End file.
